From Scratch

NYT>Science>Environment>Green>Yet Another Route to Cellulosic Ethanol>Feb. 10, 2011 Corn ethanol plant in Colorado. A/B) My personal commentary: Lately I've been reading a lot about biofuels— oh, and natural gas/hydraulic fracking, but I'll focus on just one energy source for now. A lot of good questions to ask about biofuels pertain to its viability— economically and sustainably. This NYT's blog post addresses revenue methods for one biofuels plant in particular,  Ineo Bio. I say it's a pretty clever strategy. To summarize the article, Ineos Bio, a subsidiary of a major chemical company, introduced a new concept for bringing biofuels to a commercial scale. This concept involves a three-way stream of revenue. The strategy kind of reminds me of how media advertising works now, in a bundle. To incentive advertisers, media companies throw in 'free' ad space, ie, Seventh Generation pays $1,000 for a half-page ad in The Economist , The Economis...

NYT>Home and Garden> Preventing Heat From Sneaking Out of the House Weatherstrip your door utilizing a rubber door sweep. As an urbanite living in an apt. most appropriately described as "livable" in regards to its size, most of Tedeschi's article on weatherproofing a house does not apply to me. A house with an attic and basement? --I'll pass. However, Tedeschi provides a couple valuable weatherproofing tips that too applies to an urbanites apt.: If your doorway lacks adjustable thresholds, install a rubber door sweep (about $7 at Home Depot). Weatherstripping, is also a must, for doors and windows. Mr. Gfeller prefers stripping of various thicknesses (the labels say whether they’re designed for doorways or windows); Frost King’s cost about $4 to $7 a package. Mr. David prefers V-shaped stripping (about $4 from Frost King); this type, he said, breaks down less easily than foam. Thanks for the tips, Pragmatist. This would be the first step in retrofitting...

For this Monday mornings breakfast, Pollan cooks up the perfect combination of eggs and FDA regulation. I truly love hearing this guy talk about food. Go to: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/29/opinion/29schlosser.html?hpw